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Feb. 24th, 2006 03:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
trinityvixenHow spitefully awful have these Olympics been on the Americans' side? Are commentators in other countries nearly so biased and mean?
I don't know how many of you watch this stuff regularly--I know I don't, usually--but you might have missed the pissy contest (no, that's not a typo, that's what I mean) between Chad Hendrick and Shani Davis. Way to be good sportsmen, guys. The commentators are bucking for these asshats, too. On Tuesday, waiting for the ladies' figure skating short program, I caught both of these poor sportsmen winning bronze and silver while this kid from Italy skated an amazing race for gold. They were both disappointed and snitty, the Italian looked like he was going to cry and was mobbed with bunches of other happy Italians.
The commentators? According to them, the Italian kid "stole" the gold from the Americans. Bull-fucking-shit, Dan and Dan (one of whom is Jansen, and should know better). The Italian kid skated his nuts off, and he won by a full second. That's like being the gold medalist swimmer who finishes while the rest of the pack is still touching the opposite wall. It's why Shizuka Arakawa skated to gold--the rest couldn't cut it, and she did (or, he did, in the speed skating thing).
Speaking of the gold medalist in ladies' figure skating, GOOD FOR HER. She seemed genuinely surprised and delighted to win, still stunned on the medal platform, and she'd earned it without the fanfare or "touching" back story interviews that both Sasha Cohen and Irina Slutskya got (I was pulling for Slutskya, tell you the truth, but I don't presume to say Arakawa didn't deserve her gold). She went out, skated like a mo-fo, looked absolutely, flawlessly strong doing it, and she earned her medal.
You'd have thought it was the second Pearl Harbor attack, the commentators had so little to say about her achievement. Let me set this up properly. For ladies' figure skating, the commentators were Scott Hamilton, another guy (henceforward called the Bastard), and a girl (Snitty McBitchyskates). Scott Hamilton is ridiculous in any setting, and he's got his clear favorites, fine. At least he admitted it. You just wished he'd shut up about the rest of the pack then. He knew his technical stuff, where people messed up, who would be stronger in four years, and who wouldn't without a lot of help. I am less enthused by his waxing poetic about the "changes to a young woman's body" that some of the skaters apparently struggled with. You're a gay, gay man, Scott, nobody denies it, but what the fuck do you know about female changes at puberty? Really.
Snitty was annoying, too, with her insightful commentary about how skates don't like to go sideways (which is why people on them go boom). And her amazing ability to get inside the skaters' heads and be able to tell, for example, that the crying Japanese skater wasn't happy she'd fallen about thirty times (not the gold medalist, Miki Ando, I believe). She was useless.
THE OTHER GUY, on the other fucking hand, I could have throttled. He was mostly silent, which, while Snitty was prattling on about such amazing things as what a bitch ice is for being slippery, was kinda nice. But when he spoke, BAM! Torpedo of favoritism and negativity off the port bow!!! He watched the gold medalist skate and had nothing good to say about her. She held one leg up to the sky, skating on the other and was able to keep it up without holding onto it--something no one else had the strength to do and something that is more amazing than the ability to jump a few times--and he has nothing. Her landings weren't snazzy enough; she did doubles, not triples; she didn't have Sasha Cohen's grace (I wonder how he figured that, as by that time, Sasha'd gotten her graceful bum wet twice); she wasn't Slutskya-powerful. Over and over and over, how pathetic these girls were.
Unless they were Americans. Scott Hamilton was bad about that, too, especially with Emily Hughes. Now, don't get me wrong, I thought Emily Hughes was the most adorable thing ever, but she wasn't perfect. She fell, she stuttered on her landings, and she lacked some artistic stuff. She was the cutest thing on skates last night and Tuesday, though, smiling so earnestly throughout, she looked like the only one having a good time (Sasha Cohen smiled plenty on Tuesday, and Slutskya looked proud, but Emily Hughes was supernova happy).
Howsoever that may be, it doesn't entitle her to more respect than those who did just the same as she did technically. Emily Hughes had plenty of bobbly landings, and every time she didn't come down perfect, the announcers still cheered her, saying she was "a fighter--she fought for that one!" The Candian does the same, or a Georgian two-steps out of a jump, and they're "struggling," "weak," or "tired." God, it was disgusting. I think Emily is cute, too, guys, but lets get real: she's no better, no worse when it came to that stuff.
Sheesh. This, on top of all the crap we've pulled in other sports this Olympics makes me wish the USA would just sit one out, figure out how to be good sportsmen and good audience members/commentators, then try to join the rest of the civilized world.
That, and Bob Costas trying to "relate" to the snowboard half-pipe champion. Hearing a 50-year-old man talk to a 19-year-old snowboarder is the most painful thing after the hideously biased commentary to experience. He asked if the Flying Tomato was hoping to "get the babes" with his victory afterglow, for Christ's sakes...
I put down mouse traps last night, which didn't produce any bodies as of this morning, but at least I slept better. Headaches are still in effect, though they were lower level last night. I think I'm going to make a more concerted effort to hide away from the bright living room light when I get back. Maybe play video games (or just not for a change) in the dark.
I don't know how many of you watch this stuff regularly--I know I don't, usually--but you might have missed the pissy contest (no, that's not a typo, that's what I mean) between Chad Hendrick and Shani Davis. Way to be good sportsmen, guys. The commentators are bucking for these asshats, too. On Tuesday, waiting for the ladies' figure skating short program, I caught both of these poor sportsmen winning bronze and silver while this kid from Italy skated an amazing race for gold. They were both disappointed and snitty, the Italian looked like he was going to cry and was mobbed with bunches of other happy Italians.
The commentators? According to them, the Italian kid "stole" the gold from the Americans. Bull-fucking-shit, Dan and Dan (one of whom is Jansen, and should know better). The Italian kid skated his nuts off, and he won by a full second. That's like being the gold medalist swimmer who finishes while the rest of the pack is still touching the opposite wall. It's why Shizuka Arakawa skated to gold--the rest couldn't cut it, and she did (or, he did, in the speed skating thing).
Speaking of the gold medalist in ladies' figure skating, GOOD FOR HER. She seemed genuinely surprised and delighted to win, still stunned on the medal platform, and she'd earned it without the fanfare or "touching" back story interviews that both Sasha Cohen and Irina Slutskya got (I was pulling for Slutskya, tell you the truth, but I don't presume to say Arakawa didn't deserve her gold). She went out, skated like a mo-fo, looked absolutely, flawlessly strong doing it, and she earned her medal.
You'd have thought it was the second Pearl Harbor attack, the commentators had so little to say about her achievement. Let me set this up properly. For ladies' figure skating, the commentators were Scott Hamilton, another guy (henceforward called the Bastard), and a girl (Snitty McBitchyskates). Scott Hamilton is ridiculous in any setting, and he's got his clear favorites, fine. At least he admitted it. You just wished he'd shut up about the rest of the pack then. He knew his technical stuff, where people messed up, who would be stronger in four years, and who wouldn't without a lot of help. I am less enthused by his waxing poetic about the "changes to a young woman's body" that some of the skaters apparently struggled with. You're a gay, gay man, Scott, nobody denies it, but what the fuck do you know about female changes at puberty? Really.
Snitty was annoying, too, with her insightful commentary about how skates don't like to go sideways (which is why people on them go boom). And her amazing ability to get inside the skaters' heads and be able to tell, for example, that the crying Japanese skater wasn't happy she'd fallen about thirty times (not the gold medalist, Miki Ando, I believe). She was useless.
THE OTHER GUY, on the other fucking hand, I could have throttled. He was mostly silent, which, while Snitty was prattling on about such amazing things as what a bitch ice is for being slippery, was kinda nice. But when he spoke, BAM! Torpedo of favoritism and negativity off the port bow!!! He watched the gold medalist skate and had nothing good to say about her. She held one leg up to the sky, skating on the other and was able to keep it up without holding onto it--something no one else had the strength to do and something that is more amazing than the ability to jump a few times--and he has nothing. Her landings weren't snazzy enough; she did doubles, not triples; she didn't have Sasha Cohen's grace (I wonder how he figured that, as by that time, Sasha'd gotten her graceful bum wet twice); she wasn't Slutskya-powerful. Over and over and over, how pathetic these girls were.
Unless they were Americans. Scott Hamilton was bad about that, too, especially with Emily Hughes. Now, don't get me wrong, I thought Emily Hughes was the most adorable thing ever, but she wasn't perfect. She fell, she stuttered on her landings, and she lacked some artistic stuff. She was the cutest thing on skates last night and Tuesday, though, smiling so earnestly throughout, she looked like the only one having a good time (Sasha Cohen smiled plenty on Tuesday, and Slutskya looked proud, but Emily Hughes was supernova happy).
Howsoever that may be, it doesn't entitle her to more respect than those who did just the same as she did technically. Emily Hughes had plenty of bobbly landings, and every time she didn't come down perfect, the announcers still cheered her, saying she was "a fighter--she fought for that one!" The Candian does the same, or a Georgian two-steps out of a jump, and they're "struggling," "weak," or "tired." God, it was disgusting. I think Emily is cute, too, guys, but lets get real: she's no better, no worse when it came to that stuff.
Sheesh. This, on top of all the crap we've pulled in other sports this Olympics makes me wish the USA would just sit one out, figure out how to be good sportsmen and good audience members/commentators, then try to join the rest of the civilized world.
That, and Bob Costas trying to "relate" to the snowboard half-pipe champion. Hearing a 50-year-old man talk to a 19-year-old snowboarder is the most painful thing after the hideously biased commentary to experience. He asked if the Flying Tomato was hoping to "get the babes" with his victory afterglow, for Christ's sakes...
I put down mouse traps last night, which didn't produce any bodies as of this morning, but at least I slept better. Headaches are still in effect, though they were lower level last night. I think I'm going to make a more concerted effort to hide away from the bright living room light when I get back. Maybe play video games (or just not for a change) in the dark.
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no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 08:53 pm (UTC)I think what I liked about the two of them was that neither thought she was going to get a medal, so they both just went out there, skated their hearts out, and were thrilled just to be there. They just seemed so much happier and more at ease than the older women did. The top runners were all so stressed about getting that gold that it leached the fun out.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 08:58 pm (UTC)I hope they revise the system yet again. Who cares if it's a little biased in favor of artistry? These are athletes, and I don't think anyone contests that, but we get enough of the "Just run up and jump" with the skiiers and snowboarders. There's something about skating that really could use the grace that used to be there.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 09:07 pm (UTC)Not that I'm saying anything bad about the gold medal winner, but she wouldn't have gotten a medal if Kwan was on the ice. That's even counting on Kwan's history of falls in the previous two Olympics. The judging process is as biased as the commentators. The new system tries to take some of that out, but it can only do so much. For Japan to pull a gold in Ice Skating is really a long shot win, at least in the eyes of the world.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 09:15 pm (UTC)That said, I've never sat and watched her skate, so I'm stinky pants for making assumptions based on only what I've read.
What's up with the boycott of this Olympics?
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 09:26 pm (UTC)Yeah you have to see how Kwan skates at the national level, or even international but non-olympic, to understand why she is thought of so highly. Her main problem at the olympic level is that she is her own worse enemy. The one I feel the worse for though is Slutskaya. After hearing what her coach thought of skaters from Eastern Block countries in general, I though he should have been tarred and feathered.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 09:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 09:13 pm (UTC)Was the Georgian the one in the pantsuit? I am now all forgetful.
no subject
Date: 2006-02-24 10:49 pm (UTC)